Front and rear seats in many passenger vehicles, such as automobiles, include respective head restraints which provide added comfort for a passenger. In addition to the comfort feature, the head restraints also provide a safety feature. Namely, the head restraints provide needed head support during rear end collisions which reduces the likelihood of whiplash type injuries. Head restraints are typically mounted to a top portion of a seat back as either an integral part of the seat back or as a separate unit mounted to the seat back. The head restraint usually includes some type of height adjustment mechanism to adjust the height of the heat restraint with respect to the seat back. One such type of adjustment mechanism is an adjustment button that is depressed while the passenger pushes downward on the head restraint bun to adjust the height of the heat restraint.
One of the problems associated with this type of adjustment mechanism is the awkward position of the passenger when depressing the button to adjust the height of the head restraint. In addition, the finger or hand of the passenger may be pinched by the head restraint bun when adjusting the height of the head restraint.
One solution to overrcome these deficiencies is to provide a head restraint design in which the height of the head restraint can be adjusted by use of a motor. However, this solution significantly increases the costs associated with the head restraint design.
Thus, there is a need for a cost-effective head restraint design that allows the passenger to adjust the height of the head restraint without being placed in an awkward position or being exposed to potential injury.